Tote-A-Ton Duffel Bag

I purchased this duffle bag on short notice for a recent trip from Colorado to Florida. Thanks to Amazon Prime and a couple of bucks extra for next day delivery, it arrived in plenty of time for me to pack the night before my early morning departure. I had to have this size of bag as I was packing my metal detector for treasure hunting during my visit and it comes in just under the size restriction imposed by the airlines. Of course, I was worried about using a soft sided bag for my metal detector, but with careful packing using cardboard, bubble wrap and my clothes I was able to securely protect my detector. (Honestly, I was more worried about the TSA holding the bag because of the strange configuration and electronics of the detector than I was about how it might fare through baggage handling!). Then there is the weight restriction imposed by the airlines. With the extra packing materials, my clothes and even a few hard cover books and personal items I was way below the weight limit at only 32 Lbs. with room to spare! This bag is light. About a pound or maybe a little more by itself. One thing that made me examine this bag instead of others was the name Samsonite. Long known for quality and durability. My family still has several older Samsonite luggage items. Yep, they weigh more than the new stuff, but they have survived for over 40 years! Granted this bag has only made one trip, but it has no signs of wear at all. I intend on using it for several upcoming back road camping trips in the Colorado mountains this summer. If it makes it through those trips then I will back to post more about it and probably buy one or two more! One thing I didn't like was that there was no way to securely fasten the zippers when you close it. This was easily solved by using either a rubber band through the zipper eyelets then tying it in a knot or a using a zip tie. (Maybe I'm lucky that TSA didn't cut them, or maybe they really know a metal detector when they see one!) Anyway, next time I fly, I will use a TSA approved lock on the zippers. One last thing. I was crunched for time when I purchased this bag and I really wanted the black one which was out of stock at the time. The red one was available and several dollars cheaper so I got it. I am so glad I did! If you fly a lot (I don't) you know that most bags and luggage are black. When my bag popped up on the carousel I noticed it immediately! Red is the new Black! Even if you're headed down to the far reaches of some unknown continent, I fully recommend you consider this very inexpensive duffel. This one might survive much better than others!! [p.s. Yep! I recovered enough treasure to pay for my trip and then some!]

I originally bought this bag to protect my huge 65 L backpack during air travel. It's lightweight and compact enough that I could fold it up and keep it in my pack while hiking, but huge enough that I could throw my backpack into it along with all of my gear, and still have room to spare. It was really difficult to carry around the airport when so heavy, but it was a price I was willing to pay. My boyfriend didn't think this bag was a good idea and bought a bag specifically made for air travel with backpacks, and his had no handles so it was impossible to carry and also ripped, so he won't be using it again. My bag came through the whole trip and both flights in pristine condition, and I now use it all the time to go between home and college when I don't have time or am too lazy to pack nicely. I throw everything and I'm good to go. I've never run out of room with this bag! Now, a year later, we are buying this bag again (in the same pretty turquoise color) because my family had an exchange student this year and she needed another suitcase to bring home all of the clothes and belongings she acquired this year. She had no idea what to do because she needed something roomy and very lightweight so she could take as much as possible home without exceeding the weight limit, and she didn't want to spend $100 on another suitcase. Luckily last weekend I came home from college the day before I had an international flight and I didn't have time to plan what I would pack, so I threw everything I might want to bring in this bag and drove home. I came in the door talking about what a good purchase this bag was and how useful and affordable it is, and now she has a solution to her packing problem as well! This bag is huge, you can literally fit a person in it. If you're in a similar situation, I highly suggest this bag! You won't be disappointed. If you're looking for a bag that offers a lot of organization, is small enough for an overnight stay, or keeps its shape, this is not the bag for you. If you want something so big you'll never fill it up, lightweight, durable, and takes up no room, this is your bag! (Just make sure you get a lock for the zippers or tie them together if you're going to be flying, because they may come undone otherwise)

June 9, 2016 Product Update: I reviewed the Duffle below and wanted to add one more picture to the collection. I'm heading to Nepal tomorrow and collected 27 pairs of running sneakers to deliver to the mountain running community. There is an organization there that collects gently used or new sneakers to donate to mountain runners of all ages. Nepalese live on less than $2 a day. The earthquake is still leaving a lasting impression on the small villages that have been neglected by the government. Anyway, you'll be able to see how this duffle allows me to transport lots of sneakers! Both EMS and REI have their own packable duffle bag which is used to protect backpacks while flying to your destination. They stuff inside of a their pocket and measure approximately 8x10x2. EMS's bag is $49 and 38" long. REI's bag is $29 and 36" long. After purchasing both I found the Samsonite Tote-a-ton and returned the more expensive bags. The tote-a-ton is cheap in $ but not in quality. The durable material is the same as the more expensive duffles with two sturdy handles to lift. There's outside pocket and inside pocket, too. I have an Osprey Aura AG 65L. The pack is approximately 31 inches long. It fits perfectly into the duffle with room to spare. I haven't actually packed the backpack but feel confident it will still fit into the duffle. I am packrafting in Alaska this summer. I need something that will safely get my backpack and gear to Alaska. While in Alaska I will use my backpack for day trips/rafting and my gear will go into the duffle which will be hauled, by the outfitter, to the next location. Perfect solution! Plus, in the future, when I travel and don't need the duffle, it collapses perfectly and can be stuffed into my pack without taking up a lot of space. I have a friend traveling to Nepal in March. I showed her the duffle and she's purchasing one to protect her backpack, too. Great deal. We'll see how it holds up in June and I'll report back then :-) UPDATE July 14, 2015: I just returned from my 10 day trip to South Central Alaska. The duffle was perfect for this trip! Just like I mentioned above...the duffle protected my 65L when I checked it on the plane and then I used it to store my gear and clothing while using my backpack for packrafting during the day. The placement of the zipper made the bag easy to get in and out of. I'm not sure how well the material will continue to hold up because it is rather light weight. It was pretty dirty after being checked on the plane. I don't travel regularly so it may be a while before it gets used again. However, the light weight factor can be a plus if you are backpacking and have to stow the duffle in your backpack. I'd still highly recommend it!

These are fantastic duffle bags for what I used them for. I purchased several of these duffle bags to use when moving from one state to another. While a professional moving company took all of my furniture and household items, I had to live in temporary housing for a few months in my new city after starting a new job, so had to bring a substantial amount of my clothing, including my professional work wardrobe of many suits, dresses, etc., with me in a car that I was driving to my new city. I also needed to be able to contain my clothing somehow in interim housing for a few months, as there was no closet space for my clothes. These duffle bags worked perfectly. They fit an incredible amount of clothing. I also used them to store all of my sheets, down comforter, bed pillows, towels, and winter coats, which also fit perfectly. They are much, much larger than you can appreciate from the photograph. I was so pleased with these duffle bags that the next time I moved, across town, I purchased more of these instead of using cardboard boxes, as these duffle bags are easy to move and carry. They also stack well on top of each other. While they were perfect for my needs, I wouldn't recommend purchasing them if you need a large bag to use traveling, however, or if you need to carry items that need to be protected from bumps. The fabric is very thin, like a thin running windbreaker, or a parachute, which I don't believe would hold up if you used one of the bags to backpack through Europe with, for example, or if you needed to transport fragile items without breaking. But I hope those facts would be obvious from the photograph and description of the product.

Great and light weight yet holds a good amount of stuff

Very large bag for storing or transporting pretty much anything. I actually think I could fit my girlfriend in this bag if I needed to. I had a use in mind when I purchased this, which was to store summer clothes. After receiving it I am realizing that it would be great for so many things that I will likely buy more when the price is right. This would be great to store sports equipment, beach items, clothing, blankets...and much more. Has a water resistant exterior, heavy duty zippers and a nice reinforced handles. There is a separate zippered interior pocket for smaller items so that they don't get lose inside the bag. When you unzip it fully it is almost flat to allow you to fill it easily which improves its functionality. I chose red because it will be easy to see if I tuck it in a corner of the basement.

For a long time I just lined up handled grocery bags of clothing for our lengthy Cape Cod vacation. It's the sort of trip where you can just pack & unpack over a period of days, going & returning-- and plenty of room in the minivan. Before that, I used those huge ziplox-style bags that you compress the air out of-- very space-saving, but got sick of the way they slip all over the place. So decided to bite the bullet with a return to the long-ago choice of a large duffel bag [which had struck me as sort of chaotic access long ago]. And went with Samsonite after reading reviews of broken zippers for other brands. FABULOUS!! The size and dimensions of this bag are perfect. You can live out of it easily (cottage this time did not have a lot of drawer-space). Items remain folded just as you put them in there in the generous rectangular space. Material AND ZIPPERS are very sturdy.

Great product and great price!!